"True Prayer" is a truly rare and powerful spiri-musical offering. How many other psychedelic folk albums are the product of seven years of deep shamanic initiation, spiritual pilgrimage, and total immersion in ceremonial living? The answer surely is "very few"... but now there is one at least: this LP, the debut album of New York based Alan Scheurman under the moniker Santiparro.
Santiparro means "the lens that sees many things not usually seen." It is a name that was given to Alan Scheurman in 2010 during a pilgrimage with a Wixatari (Huichol) family to Wirikuta - the sacred desert where Peyote originates.
Scheurman grew up in the Detroit indie music scene and moved to Brooklyn following a spiritual awakening in 2007. There, he contributed to the founding of an intentional community and educational center called the Golden Drum under the guidance of shaman and spiritual teacher Maestro Manuel Rufino. Scheurman spent the next seven years centering himself in shamanic rites and initiation making frequent pilgrimages to visit and study with elders in North, Central and South America.
The songs that form "True Prayer" bubbled up after deep dives into the Spirit World, they were gathered from the outer reaches of our ever expanding collective consciousness. And although sojourns into the shamanic realms are intense in nature, the music collected here does not overpower. "True Prayer" is accessible and fertile, sincere and extraordinary pop & folk music – sparkling with the light of Wisdom.
The album is blessed with guest contributions from Will Oldham (Bonnie 'Prince' Billy), Kyp Malone (TV On The Radio), Adam Wills (Bear In Heaven), Melati Malay (Young Magic) and Ben Bromley (NewVillager). "True Prayer" is an emergent work, ancient teachings and timeless visions, transmitted through the artistry of a modern man.
